When Derek Met Chloe
by Bribear393
Summary: My spin on the moment Derek meets Chloe; explicit excerpts from the first novel.


When Derek Met Chloe

May 5, 2013

Written while listening to the song: _Gracie's Theme_ by Paul Cardall

Contains explicit excerpts from the novel The Awakening: Darkest Powers Book One by Kelley Armstrong

I smelt her first; an intoxicating mix of strawberries and vanilla that I didn't recognize. It was enchanting. I rounded the corner as Simon pulled down the unopened sleeve of crackers.

"The other one's already opened," she whispered. She was small, with a head of short blonde hair wild with red streaks. Her shy voice drew me in closer.

"Thanks, but he'll want the whole thing. Right, bro?" Simon looked my way. She turned and yelped, surprised by my height. Also probably the fact that I was less than a foot away from her. I almost apologized, but then her large blue eyes caught mine, and I was lost.

It was like a dream, an out of body experience.

I saw her, with darker hair, ready to walk away from me. But she turned, put her hands around my neck and pulled me down for what looked like an explosive first kiss.

And then I was a wolf, chasing her through the woods, her blonde hair glistening and dancing behind her, her smile dazzling.

And the new were in the sunshine, in a meadow in the middle of nowhere. I spun her in my arms, 'round and 'round, until we collapsed onto the grass laughing. I rolled on top of her, brushing back longer blond hair from her face before leaning in for the sweetest kiss…

And then we were standing together, our left hands tied together with a white ribbon, tearful joy radiating from her beautiful face.

And then we were in some type of living room, and I was on my knees before her, resting my ear against her swollen belly. She leaned down to kiss the top of my head, her long hair tickling my shoulders.

And then we were in a hospital, her light brown hair braided and ravaged. Her eyes were bright and her cheeks were flushed. She looked down and I followed her gaze to the small baby boy in her arms. I lay a hand on his head, threading my fingers through his damp black hair, and kissed her.

And then we were in the living room again, her and the child rolling on the floor laughing, their bright blue eyes watering as I tickled them mercilessly.

And then the three of us were in the meadow in the middle of nowhere. I lay as a wolf and the two of them lay back on me. She was pointing the constellations out to the curious child, and he would check the book on his lap to make sure she was right.

And then he was grown and graduating from high school with dozens of ribbons as his accolades. Pride swelled within me and I pulled her in close to my side.

And then we were helping him through his changes, meeting in the meadow, staying until he got it right.

And then he brought home a mate of his own, a beautiful young girl with golden eyes.

I blinked and was back in the kitchen at Lyle House, staring into her glorious blue eyes.

"I- I- I-" she swallowed, "I didn't see you there." Her voice washed over me again, calming and enticing at the same time.

What the hell was that? I needed to leave, to think, regroup, and hopefully make some sense of whatever just happened to me. I looked past her to Simon. I reached to snag the crackers without touching her and turned, hoping to make my escape.

Someone caught my shirt, pulling me back, and I prayed it wasn't her.

"We're still teaching him manners," Simon said, "Derek, Chloe. Chloe, my brother, Derek." I saw the way he was looking at her; Simon liked Chloe. My chest seized. I needed to get out of here, clear my head before I did something stupid.

"Brother?" she pressed.

"Yeah," I choked out, my throat unreasonably tight. "Identical twins." I tried for humor, but it came out wrong. I was too shocked, too frustrated, and too damn enraptured by her presence.

"He's my foster brother." Simon added. Did he even realize how much he touched her? Even now he had a hand at her elbow. I felt sick. "So I was just about to tell Chloe-"

"We done here?" I interrupted. I didn't want to be here to watch them talk, flirt; to watch her fall for him before my eyes.

He waved me away and I made my escape, dodging Tori on my way out, my heart in my throat and my head in a tailspin over the one word that kept repeating in the back of my mind.

_Mate._


End file.
